Eternals 50th Anniversary Special #1

Come celebrate 50 years of Eternals with this Anniversary Special issue that brings together three short stories featuring three talented creative teams!

Creative Team

Back from the Edge:
Ethan S. Parker & Griffin Sheridan (Writers), Dale Eaglesham & Phil Noto (Artists),
Luis Guerrero & Phil Noto (Colorists), Travis Lanham (Letterer),
R.B. Silva & David Curiel (Main Cover Artists)

Of Masks & Monsters:
Ralph Macchio (Writer), Michael Cho (Artist), Lee Loughridge (Colorist), Travis Lanham (Letterer)

The Lost Eternal:
Patrick Stump (Writer), Domenico Carbone (Artist), Javier Tartaglia (Colorist), Travis Lanham (Letterer)

Gabriel Mata (Designer), Lauren Amaro (Associate Editor), Mark Paniccia (Editor),
C.B. Cebulski (Editor-in-Chief)

Publisher: Marvel Comics

50th Anniversary Special

“Back from the Edge”

The first of three stories for this 50th anniversary issue of Eternals, written by Ethan S. Parker & Griffin Sheridan, takes the reader on a journey between Ikaris and Steve Rogers (Captain America). Within the first couple of pages of this story, you get a sense that Ikaris has a sad feeling of being alone. Walking the streets of New York, full of people who show no desire to notice who he is. That really becomes evident when Steve Rogers bumps into Ikaris at a hot dog stand.

The story continues with a flashback in time to 1942 in Germany. This is where Steve and Ikaris first met, and a friendship started. It is within those panels that you see these two individuals share the same morals when it comes to protecting innocent lives. This helps to better explain their reactions to one another in the present day at the hot dog stand.

“Of Masks & Monsters”

This second story of three of this 50th anniversary issue of Eternals is written by Ralph Macchio. In this story, you follow the history of the character Ransak. He had a very rough and abusive upbringing. The abuse ranged from mental to physical. Causing Ransak to have a mental shift about who he truly is. This story is said to have taken place within the Eternals series from 1976. The amount of abuse Ransak is subjected to makes you feel remorse for him. No child, let alone an individual, should ever be subjected to that level of abuse. And sadly, it happens to children and adults in our world daily.

“The Lost Eternal”

Patrick Stump makes his Marvel Comics debut with this third and final story in the Eternals’ 50th anniversary issue. This is a futuristic story detailing the whereabouts of a lost Eternal. A young man who has no idea who or what he is is subjected to a battle that causes him much confusion. With a voice within his head, he can conjure powers and abilities that he seemingly did not know he had. This individual poses a threat to the Eternals as a whole and leaves them baffled about how to stop him.

The Writing

Travis:

Ethan S. Parker & Griffin Sheridan bring the reader a very compelling story. Bringing together two Marvel characters from two very different cultures to show teamwork and ultimately friendship. The dialogue between the two characters is very well written and shows compassion sprinkled with minor humor as well. The plot for this story is very compassionate and generally easy to follow.

Ralph Macchio makes a comeback to writing for Marvel Comics with his story. And I really enjoy the fact that he takes his story back to the 1976 Eternals series. For those who may not know, Ralph was a writer and editor for Marvel Comics before his retirement. I found this story to be very entertaining. Giving you a glimpse into a character’s past while also giving the reader a subcategory of modern-day trauma that is prevalent in today’s society.

Patrick Stump impressed me with his debut story for this issue. He brought to life a story of a potential Eternals killer character. And with the buildup of mystery as to why this character has no idea of his full capabilities is fascinating if Marvel would run with that story. I look forward to seeing Patrick write more and to seeing what he has up his sleeves for comic books.

Shawn:

The Eternals 50th Anniversary issue is broken up into three stories. Ethan S. Parker and Griffin Sheridan give us the first story, “Back from the Edge”. Parker and Sheridan created a really unique story that shows us a relationship I had never really thought about before. I always like stories that give us a glimpse into what characters are doing when they aren’t being superheroes, and this feels like an excellent example of that. It’s a satisfying story of camaraderie and friendship.

The second story, “Of Masks and Monsters,” is by Ralph Macchio. I was really intrigued by Macchio’s decision to take a “lost chapter” approach, setting the story during a previous Eternals timeline to fill in some story. Macchio makes it feel like the focus of the story will be one character, but instead, we learn unexpected stories of different characters. Of Masks and Monsters is, at its core, a story of heartbreak, disappointment, and perhaps misplaced hope. Macchio treats readers to an Eternals-centric story that is a drastic and bold departure from the first story, and yet it works so well. The story fills in some blanks from the past and maybe even retcons a few.

The third and final story, The Lost Eternal, marks Patrick Stump’s writing debut for Marvel Comics. Stump, better known as the lead singer of the band Fallout Boy, crafts an extremely interesting story full of action that teases the potential introduction of a new Eternal. In introducing the character, Stump introduces an olive branch to potential new Eternals readers, giving them an entry point to the long-storied history of the Eternals.

The Artwork

Travis:

Dale Eaglesham, Phil Noto, and Luis Guerrero do a fantastic job with the art for the first story. The art is polished and very detailed. And the coloration on some panels really makes you feel the action that is taking place! Overall, this story had beautiful art that boosted the written story.

Michael Cho and Lee Loughridge make this second story look and feel like it was drafted in the 1970’s! Which is perfect, seeing as Ralph wrote this to be within the 1976 series. The art takes you back to reading books from that era. And that is absolutely majestic for true comic book readers.

Domenico Carbone and Javier Tartaglia bring a very clean and modern look to the final story of this issue. The pencil work is smooth and crisp, leaving easy work for the colorist. The coloration for this story was amazing. The colors are bold and even bright at times for certain panels. Fans of modern era art will enjoy what they see with this story!

Travis Lanham did the lettering for ALL three of these stories! Simply put, he showed a wide range of his lettering talent. Being able to letter three stories that vary in timelines and art styles is amazing! And to do so in a way that makes the stories easy to follow and not take away from the amazing art that is displayed, great job!

Shawn:

Collectively, seven different artists and colorists worked on this story, and it feels like each was perfectly chosen for the story they worked on. Phil Noto, along with Dale Eaglesham and Luis Guerrero, created a bright modern world contrasted with a dark past recollection in the first story.

In story two, Michael Cho and Lee Loughridge took an almost sepia approach to the initial art that provided a great way to move your mind back to the time in the Eternals lore, the story would have been set. Much like the drastic change in narrative tone from the first story, Cho and Loughridge offset the narrative of this story with darker, cooler tones, capturing the sense of hopelessness of the Deviants’ world.

Finally, Domenico Carbone and Java Taraglia do a great job bringing and then disrupting the peaceful wooded scene to life in which Stump’s story is set. The story is brightly colored like the first story, but features a distinct focus on detail that improves the quality of the story

Final Thoughts

Travis:

This 50th Anniversary issue was very captivating for me as a reader. You get glimpses into various storylines dealing with very different plots. Eternal fans will enjoy this issue, and new readers will get a basic understanding of the characters shown as well.

Shawn:

The Eternals 50th Anniversary Special offers an entertaining story for fans of any era of The Eternals, while also serving as a potential gateway for new fans to join the fray. Each story is unique, distinct, and displays the particular talents of each creative team.

Overall Grade: 8.25

Travis: 8.5/10

Shawn: 8/10

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